Beast Quest

A hero (from Greek 'h?r?s'[http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3D%2347602 Heros, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, 'A Greek-English Lexicon', at Perseus]), in Greek mythology and folklore, was originally a demigod,Heron or Heros, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, "A Greek-English Lexicon", at Perseus the offspring of a mortal and a deity,Plato, 'Cratylus'

their cult being one of the most distinctive features of ancient Greek religion.

Later, hero (male) and heroine (female) came to refer to characters (fictional or historical) that, in the face of danger and adversity or from a position of weakness, display courage and the will for self sacrifice - that is, heroism - for some greater good, originally of martial courage or excellence but extended to more general moral excellence.

Stories of heroism may serve as moral examples. In classical antiquity, hero cults - veneration of deified heroes such as Heracles, Perseus, and Achilles - played an important role in Ancient Greek religion. Politicians, ancient and modern, have employed hero worship for their own apotheosis (i.e., cult of personality).

:This article discusses significance-laden journeys. For other meanings see Quest (disambiguation)

In mythology and literature a quest ? a journey towards a goal ? serves as a plot device and (frequently) as a symbol. Quests appear in the folklore of every nationJosepha Sherman, Once upon a Galaxy p 142 ISBN 0-87483-387-6 and also figure prominently in non-national cultures. In literature, the objects of quests require great exertion on the part of the hero, and the overcoming of many obstacles, typically including much travel.

This travel also allows the storyteller to showcase exotic locations and cultures (an objective of the narrator, not of the character).Michael O. Riley, Oz and Beyond: The Fantasy World of L. Frank Baum, p 178-9, ISBN 0-7006-0832-X

Category: File - :Ukiyo-e dragon 2.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Dragon, Japanese ukiyo-e woodcut, c. 1750-1900.

The dragon is a legendary creature with serpentine or otherwise reptilian traits that features in the myths of many cultures.

The two most familiar interpretations of dragons are European dragons, derived from various European folk traditions, and the unrelated Oriental dragons, derived from the Chinese dragon (lóng,?,?). The word "dragon" derives from Greek ?????? (drak?n), "a serpent of huge size, a python, a dragon" and that from ??????? (drakein) aorist infinitive active of the verb ???????? (derkomai) "I see clearly".Drakon, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, at Perseus

:This article is about sea serpents in mythology and cryptozoology. For actual, well-known sea-living snakes, see Sea snake. For the constellation, see Hydra (constellation).

A sea serpent or sea dragon is a mythological sea monster either wholly or partly serpentine.

Sightings of sea serpents have been reported for hundreds of years, and continue to be claimed today. Cryptozoologist Bruce Champagne identified more than 1,200 purported sea serpent sightings.Bruce Champagne. A Preliminary Evaluation of a Study of the Morphology, Behavior, Autoecology, and Habitat of Large, Unidentified Marine Animals, Based on Recorded Field Observations. Available at strangeark. Pages 99-118 Despite these numerous sightings, no credible physical evidence has been recorded and it is currently believed that the sightings can be best explained as misidentification of known animals such as whales.

Some cryptozoologists have suggested that the sea serpents are relict plesiosaurs, mosasaurs or other Mesozoic marine reptiles, an idea often associated with lake monsters such as the Loch Ness Monster.

The mythology and legends of many different cultures include monsters of human appearance but prodigious size and strength. "Giant" is the English word commonly used for such beings, derived from one of the most famed examples: the gigantes (greek ????????) of Greek mythology.

In various Indo-European mythologies, gigantic peoples are featured as primeval creatures associated with chaos and the wild nature, and they are frequently in conflict with the gods, be they Olympian, Hindu or Norse.

There are also other stories featuring giants in the Old Testament, perhaps most famously Goliath. Attributed to them are superhuman strength and physical proportions, a long lifespan, and thus a great deal of knowledge as well.

Fairy tales such as Jack and the Beanstalk have formed our modern perception of giants as stupid and violent monsters, frequently said to eat humans, and especially children. However, in some more recent portrayals, like those of Roald Dahl, some giants are both intelligent and friendly.

In Greek mythology, the centaurs (from - Kéntauroi) are a race of creatures composed of part human and part horse. In early Attic vase-paintings, they are depicted with the torso of a human joined at the waist to the horse's withers, where the horse's neck would be.

This half-human and half-animal composition has led many writers to treat them as liminal beings, caught between the two natures, embodied in contrasted myths, both as the embodiment of untamed nature, as in their battle with the Lapiths, or conversely as teachers, like Chiron.

The centaurs were usually said to have been born of Ixion and Nephele (the cloud made in the image of Hera). Another version, however, makes them children of a certain Centaurus, who mated with the Magnesian mares. This Centaurus was either the son of Ixion and Nephele (instead of the Centaurs) or of Apollo and Stilbe, daughter of the river god Peneus. In the latter version of the story his twin brother was Lapithus, ancestor of the Lapiths, thus making the two warring peoples cousins.

Centaurs were said to have inhabited the region of Magnesia and Mount Pelion in Thessaly, Mount Pholoe in Arcadia and the Malean peninsula in southern Laconia.

The Yeti or Abominable Snowman is a mythological creature and an ape-like cryptid said to inhabit the Himalayan region of Nepal and Tibet. The names Yeti and Meh-Teh are commonly used by the people indigenous to the region, and are part of their history and mythology. Stories of the Yeti first emerged as a facet of Western popular culture in the 19th century.

The scientific community largely regards the Yeti as a legend, given the lack of evidence,. yet it remains one of the most famous creatures of cryptozoology. The Yeti can be considered a parallel to the Bigfoot legend of North America.

The phoenix (Ancient Greek: ??????, phoínix) is a mythical sacred firebird which originated in the ancient mythologies mentioned in the Greek Mythology, and later the Phoenician and the Egyptian.

The Colossal Squid (Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni, from Greek mesos (middle), onyx (claw), and teuthis (squid)), sometimes called the Antarctic or Giant Cranch Squid, is believed to be the largest squid species. It is the only known member of the genus Mesonychoteuthis. Though it is known from only a few specimens, current estimates put its maximum size at 12?14 metres (39?46 feet) long, based on analysis of smaller and immature specimens, making it the largest known invertebrate.

The Hominidae (anglicized Hominids, also known as great apes"Great ape" is a common name rather than a taxonomic label and there are differences in usage. Subtly, it may seem to exclude human beings ("humans and the great apes") or to include them ("humans and non-human great apes").) form a taxonomic family, including four extant genera: chimpanzees, gorillas, humans and orangutans.

A number of known extinct genera are grouped with humans in the Hominina subtribe, others with orangutans in the Ponginae subtribe. The most recent common ancestor of the Hominidae lived some 13 million years ago, when the ancestors of the orangutans speciated from the ancestors of the other three genera. The ancestors of the Hominidae family in turn speciated from those of the Hylobatidae family some 15 million years ago.